Secondary Investor Industry Ventures Raises $1.7B+ For Two New Funds

Technology investor Industry Ventures announced that it has closed on more than $1.45 billion for its latest secondary fund, which will focus on buying minority stakes in later-stage venture-backed companies.

In addition to the new secondaries fund, Industry Ventures Secondary X, the firm also raised over $260 million for a buyout fund. That fund, Industry Ventures Tech Buyout II, will focus on small software company buyouts and emerging software buyout funds.

The fundraises come at an unusual juncture point in the late-stage startup ecosystem. After pouring in record sums during the technology bull run that peaked in late 2021, late-stage investors have pulled back sharply in the past several quarters.

Valuations of many heavily funded private companies, meanwhile, are far below peak as well. Steep declines in shares of publicly traded energy technology companies have played a big role in pushing down private valuations as well.

Liquidity is also tougher to come by. Industry Ventures calls the present moment “a time of burgeoning market demand for investor liquidity.”

The strategy for San Francisco-based Industry Ventures’ secondary fund will rely on buying stakes from existing investors in the most promising VC-backed private companies at compelling prices. To this end, the firm has a lot of experience.

Over a 20-year history, Industry Ventures says it has completed more than 600 secondary investments. This includes over 400 secondary venture capital fund limited partnership interests and 170 direct secondary company share purchases, collectively covering over 5,500 venture-backed companies.

To date, the firm says the largest exits for the secondary strategy have come from investments in Uber, Alibaba, ZipRecruiter, Nubank, Marqeta, Roblox, Trustwave,Twitter (now X) and Upwork.

Illustration: Dom Guzman